Wednesday, 9 July 2014
Pay dispute at NGH steps up as full strike called by locked out blood scientists
Pay dispute at NGH steps up as full strike called by locked out blood scientists The lockout of blood test scientists by Northampton General Hospital has turned into full strike Northampton Chronicle and Echo
Better Care Fund, better read the small print?
Better Care Fund, better read the small print? Although earlier rumours of the demise of the Better Care Fund – the government’s flagship £3.8 billion pooled fund to promote integrated care – have turned out to be greatly exaggerated, the significance of the government’s latest announcement about the fund should not be. Although this has been fed by mounting political anxieties about the state of hospital finances ahead of next year’s general election, the writing has always been on the wall.
Staff engagement case studies
Staff engagement case studies These focus on the journey, the challenges and the outcomes of three NHS trusts. Some of the key outcomes include major improvements in national staff survey results, reductions in sickness absence and staff feeling more valued. NHS Employers
The pursuit of happiness: a new ambition for our mental health
The pursuit of happiness: a new ambition for our mental health This is the final report of the CentreForum Mental Health Commission, chaired by Paul Burstow MP, which looked at the state of mental wellbeing in England. It calls for parity of funding for mental health which currently receives 13% of NHS spend in England but accounts for 23% of demand. It also identifies five key priorities for policy makers to improve the investment in mental health services; improve access to mental health services; and promote self-care, support and recovery in mental health. Centre Forum
New ways of working in mental health services: a qualitative, comparative case study assessing and informing the emergence of new peer worker roles in mental health services in England
New ways of working in mental health services: a qualitative, comparative case study assessing and informing the emergence of new peer... A variety of peer worker roles are being introduced into the mental health workforce in England, in a range of organisational contexts and service delivery settings. The evidence base demonstrating the effectiveness of peer worker-based interventions is inconclusive and largely from outside England. This study aimed to test the international evidence base, and what is known generally about role adoption in public services, in a range of mental health services in England. It also aimed to develop organisational learning supporting the introduction of peer worker roles, identifying learning that was generic across mental health services and that which was specific to organisational contexts or service delivery settings. National Institute for Health Research
Organ transplants 'on the rise'
Organ transplants 'on the rise' The number of organ transplants is continuing to rise, but the UK still lags behind other countries, official figures show. BBC News
See also:
See also:
- VIDEO: How organ transplant changed my life BBC News
- Organ transplants at record level The Daily Telegraph
GPs keen to play bigger role in responding to cases of child maltreatment
GPs keen to play bigger role in responding to cases of child maltreatment The report, The GP’s Role in Responding to Child Maltreatment, claims that giving family doctors the time, support and autonomy to work with vulnerable families in the community – as well as referring cases to social care services – could benefit children and families in the short and long term. Royal College of General Practitioners
Improving dementia long-term care: a policy blueprint
Improving dementia long-term care: a policy blueprint The authors identified 25 high-impact policy options covering five broad objectives to improve dementia long-term services and support the delivery system, workforce and financing. Rand Corporation
Monday deadline for tech fund two bids
Monday deadline for tech fund two bids NHS trusts in England are at varying stages of readiness for the £240m second round of NHS England's technology fund, with the deadline for applications closing in less than a week. E-Health Insider
Blood test for Alzheimer’s 'no better than coin toss'
Blood test for Alzheimer’s 'no better than coin toss' “Research in more than 1,000 people has identified a set of proteins in the blood which can predict the start of the dementia with 87% accuracy,” BBC News reports.
The primary goal of the test was to predict whether people with mild cognitive impairments (usually age-related memory problems) would go on to develop “full-blown” Alzheimer’s disease over approximately a year.
There is currently no cure for Alzheimer’s, so people may question whether an early warning system for the disease is of any practical use.
However, having a relatively reliable method of identifying high-risk people who will develop Alzheimer’s could be useful in recruiting suitable candidates for clinical trials investigating future treatments.
An important point is that, while the test accuracy rate of 87% sounds impressive, it may be a large overestimate of what would happen in reality.
Given real world assumptions on the proportion of people who have mild cognitive impairment that progress to Alzheimer’s disease (10-15%), the predictive ability of the test falls to around 50% – no better than a coin toss.
Furthermore, the test only made predictions from around a year earlier.
Consequently, on its own, this test is unlikely to be much good. However, refining this test and combining it with other methods (such as a lipid test we discussed in March) might improve accuracy rates, making it a viable predictive tool in the future.
The primary goal of the test was to predict whether people with mild cognitive impairments (usually age-related memory problems) would go on to develop “full-blown” Alzheimer’s disease over approximately a year.
There is currently no cure for Alzheimer’s, so people may question whether an early warning system for the disease is of any practical use.
However, having a relatively reliable method of identifying high-risk people who will develop Alzheimer’s could be useful in recruiting suitable candidates for clinical trials investigating future treatments.
An important point is that, while the test accuracy rate of 87% sounds impressive, it may be a large overestimate of what would happen in reality.
Given real world assumptions on the proportion of people who have mild cognitive impairment that progress to Alzheimer’s disease (10-15%), the predictive ability of the test falls to around 50% – no better than a coin toss.
Furthermore, the test only made predictions from around a year earlier.
Consequently, on its own, this test is unlikely to be much good. However, refining this test and combining it with other methods (such as a lipid test we discussed in March) might improve accuracy rates, making it a viable predictive tool in the future.
GP leaders to meet Lord Howe in bid to break premises funding deadlock
GP leaders to meet Lord Howe in bid to break premises funding deadlock GP leaders will bid to break the deadlock over investment in primary care premises at a high level summit with health minister Lord Howe this week. GP Online
NHS chief announces plan to give patients cash to fund their own care
NHS chief announces plan to give patients cash to fund their own care Simon Stevens says giving patients financial control will force health and social care systems to provide better services
Billions of pounds of health service and town hall budgets are to be handed over to the most vulnerable patients to purchase health and social care services in the community, in a dramatic change of policy being unveiled by the NHS's new boss.
Frail elderly people, disabled children and those with serious mental illness or learning disabilities will from next April be offered individual pots of money to spend as they see fit on health and social care services such as carers, physiotherapists and psychotherapy sessions, in an attempt, in part, to keep them out of hospital. Continue reading... The Guardian
Billions of pounds of health service and town hall budgets are to be handed over to the most vulnerable patients to purchase health and social care services in the community, in a dramatic change of policy being unveiled by the NHS's new boss.
Frail elderly people, disabled children and those with serious mental illness or learning disabilities will from next April be offered individual pots of money to spend as they see fit on health and social care services such as carers, physiotherapists and psychotherapy sessions, in an attempt, in part, to keep them out of hospital. Continue reading... The Guardian
Number of vulnerable adults receiving state-provided care has plummeted, official figures show
Number of vulnerable adults receiving state-provided care has plummeted, official figures show The number of adults receiving state-provided care has plummeted by almost a third following Government cuts to council budgets, official figures show. The Independent
See also:
See also:
- Economic downturn wipes out 30pc of care for elderly and disabled The Daily Telegraph
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